The Ministry of Health launched a campaign to inform the patients that they can ask in drugstores the whole range of medicines that contain the same active pharmaceutical ingredient, needed for treatment. The druggists are obliged to present all the commercial names that contain the same active ingredient so that the patients could choose the most suitable products. The campaign entitled “Same active substance! Why should you pay more?” will be carried out between November 18, 2016 and March 31, 2017, IPN reports.

Deputy Minister of Health Liliana Iasan said it is the active ingredient that treats the decease, not the commercial name, form or color of the pill. “Our patients are not well informed in this regard. The druggist does not inform the patient about the active ingredient of the medicine. Both the druggist and the family doctor violate the Ministry of Health’s order on drug prescription,” she stated.

Director general of the National Health Insurance Company Dumitru Parfentiev said two social commercials, a video and an audio one, will be broadcast during the campaign. Informative brochures will be distributed to inform the people about the possibility of asking for the most suitable medicine with active ingredient needed for treatment. “We will inform the general public as well as the doctors and druggists. During four months, we will stage information seminars for these,” stated Parfentiev.

Director general of the Agency for Medicines and Medical Devices Vladislav Zara said the difference in the prices of original and generic drugs is of about 25%, while the quality is the same and the active ingredient has the same treatment properties. The difference is that some of these are patented, while for the others the producers purchase the production right and do not incur invention costs. The quality of all the drugs that enter the pharmaceutical market of Moldova is checked.